ISSUE
Thisisabumper,bonussummeredition ofAGSReadswhichnotonlycoversall the usual book reviews and recommendations, but includes the wholeyearreviewofalloureventsand activities.
Takeanostalgiclookatwhatwasgoing on intheLibraryoverthelastyear HaveagreatsummerandI'llseeyouall inSeptember!
MissPushong
Contentsbelowareallhyper-linked
AUTUMN 2025 DIARY
September 13th - Roald Dahl Day
September 19th - Harry Potter Quiz
September 21st- 27th Recycle Awareness Week
October - UK Black History Month
October 5th-11th Banned Book Week
October 16th - World Food Day
October 20th-24th Percy Jackson Week
October 31st - Halloween
November 10th-14th - Anti-Bullying Week
December - Bucks Book Award Shortlist Announced
December 1st-16th - The 12 days of Christmas Event
SUMMER READING AGS eLIBRARY
Don'tforgetthatoverthesummer, youcanusetheAGSeLibraryto download and read books on your phone, laptop etc. There is alsoanappavailablefromtheWindows/Google/Applestore.
Youcansign-inwithGoogleusingyourAGSlogin CLICKHEREtoaccesstheeLibrary
Remember, you can alter the reading settings on the eBooks to suit your needs. You can change the font and font size, plus you can also use the dyslexia friendly settings.
There are also some new features including Text to Speech (TTS), translation to 150+ languages, plus TTS for translated languages. CLICK HERE to watch a short video on these new features.
LIBRARY RESOURCES LIBRARY RESOURCES
LIBRARY RESOURCES WEBSITE
Have you visited the Library's Google site? It contains links to reading lists, links to all our onlineresourcessuchasthelibrarycatalogueandtheeLibraryaswellaslinkstogamessuch asonlineescaperooms,puzzlesandbrainteasers.
Clickheretovisitthesite
DID YOU KNOW?
As well as reserving books we have you can also request for the Library to purchase books thatyouwouldliketoread
You can either visit the library and fill in a book request card, or CLICK HERE to fill in the requestgoogleform.Youwillbenotifiedwhenthebookisavailable.
DO YOU NEED SOME BOOK SUGGESTIONS?
If you are struggling to find books to read, or maybe want some suggestions for different types of books then you need the Book Doctor! The Book Doctor has helped many students since it was introduced in September 2020 and with the introduction of the eBook library we can offer suggestions in different formats. CLICK HERE for the Book Doctor google form.
eLIBRARY
Don'tforgetyoucanusetheAGSeLibrarytodownloadandreadbooksonyourphone,laptop etcThereisalsoanappavailablefromtheWindows/Google/Applestore
Youcansign-inwithGoogleusingyourAGSlogin.
CLICKHEREtoaccesstheeLibrary
NEW! ORIGAMI CLUB
BypopulardemandtheLibrarywillberunninganOrigamiClubstartingfromSeptember. OrigamiClubwillbestudentledandwillmeetonThursdays(weekA).
Everyoneiswelcometotakepart,fromcompletebeginnerstoadvancedpaperfolders!Paper will be provided. To start with everyone will be shown how to fold a paper crane as I’m hoping that we can make strings of origami cranes for the Children’s Peace Memorial in Hiroshima.
LIBRARY CLUB
Library Club will meet on Thursday (B). Everyone who joins Library Club, will be expected totakepartinatleastonegroupreadaswellasshadowingTheBucksBookAward.
MoredetailswillfollowinSeptember.
BOOK AWARDS BOOK AWARDS
BOOK AWARD SHADOWING OPPORTUNITIES
Everyyeargroupsofstudentssign-upto‘shadow’ourfavouritebookawardsbyreadingthebooksandvotingfor theirfavourite!
TheExcelsiorAwardisanationwidebookawardforgraphicnovelsandmanga.In2026,we will definitely take part in the Blue Award (KS3) and if there is enough student demand we willalsoshadowtheRedAward(KS4).
THE CARNEGIE MEDAL FOR WRITING
The Carnegie Medal is arguably the most celebrated children's book award in the country. The shortlist is announced in March and contains eight different titles which you will be expected to read before the winner is announced Below are the books that were shortlisted for 2025:
THE BUCKS BOOK AWARD
All the books for this award are nominated and voted for by students in schools throughout Buckinghamshire.
Youcannominatebooksforthe2026awardbyvisitingtheBBAwebsite!
Below are the books that were shortlisted for 2025:
The 2025 Shortlist
BUCKS BOOK AWARD BUCKS BOOK AWARD
2025 WINNER’S
ANNOUNCEMENT
On Wednesday 12th March, AGS hosted the 2025 Bucks Book Award ceremony which was attended by students from Amersham School, Aylesbury Grammar School, Beaconsfield High School, The John Colet School, Royal Grammar School and Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School.
The morning started with a talk from the author, Sue Wallman, who talked about her journey as an author and gave us some interesting insights on the world of publishing.
Then came the announcement we were all waiting for - the announcement of the winners of the 2025 Bucks Book Award.
The Children’s Book Prize was won by The Boy Who Fell From the Sky by Benjamin Dean and The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson was named as the winner of The Sue Harris YA Prize.
and Caleb receive their prizes from the author Sue Wallman
This was followed by the announcement of the winners of the Bad Writing and the 500 Words Short Story competitions It was great to see both Sheroon (Bad Writing) and Caleb (500 words) as runners-up in their age category. A great achievement as the competition was open to all schools in Buckinghamshire!
To read their winning entries, visit the BBA website
Afterashortbreakforrefreshmentsandabooksigning,studentscollectedintheirteamstotakepartintheBig Bucks Book Award Quiz. The quiz consisted of 5 different themed rounds, with lots of book prizes being won throughoutthequiz
Afterashortbreakforrefreshmentsandabooksigning,itwastimeforthequiz!Therewere22teamsbattlingit outtobenamedBBAQuizChampions.Itwasagreatwaytoendthe2025BucksBookAward!
Sheroon
For2025,weaddedTheExcelsiorAwardtocomplementtheotherbookawardswetake partin.Thisawardfocussesonthebestnewmangaandgraphicnovelreleases. Therearethreedifferentawardsaimedatsecondaryschools:
ExcelsiorAwardBlue,forstudentsaged11andover(KeyStage3)
ExcelsiorAwardRed,forstudentsaged14andover(KeyStage4)
ExcelsiorAwardBlack,forstudentsaged16andover(SixthForm)
To start, we chose just to take part in the Blue Award, and it was great to see how many students wanted to take part Unlike the other book awards we participate in, this one did not require students to read all the shortlisted books,althoughmoststudentsdid!
The only requirement was to complete a short rating form after reading each book Theseformsweresenttotheorganiserstodeterminethewinningbook
2025Winner! 2025Winner!
As well as the book award, there is also a competition called The 'Nuff Said Award’ which is awarded to the school with the best Excelsior Award display. As part of Library Club, students were brilliant at planning and creatingthedisplay!Eventhoughwedidn’twin,asyoucanseefromthephotobelowstudentshadalotoffun makingthethemedpropsforourdisplay!
2025 WINNER’S ANNOUNCEMENT
Every year the AGS reading group takes part in the exciting process of shadowing the Carnegie Medals. This experience gives students the chance to follow along with the official judging process as ‘shadowers.’
Shadowing is the term we use for reading the books on the Shortlist and then choosing the book we think should win This year students from Years 8, 10 and 12 took part in this year’s Carnegie Medal for Writing
th
The ceremony was held on June 19 which we live streamed in the Library so that all students who took part couldbepresentfortheannouncementofthewinner.
Westartedthemeetingwitharoundtablediscussionabouteachofthebookswhereeveryonecouldsharetheir thoughtsandopinions.Wethendelvedintoeachofthebooksinmoredetailandstudentswereaskedaspecific questionsaboutthebookstoencouragewiderdiscussionaboutthethemes
A few members of the AGS Shadowing Group!
The live-stream of the ceremony was brilliant. It was hosted by the author/poet Joseph Coelho, whose book ‘The Boy Who Was Lost in the Maze’ was last year’swinner.
In addition to the Judges Choice, students from around the country also cast their vote for their favouritebookintheShadowers’Choicecategory.
Opposite are the winners for 2025! See page 44 for a reviewofthewinningbookGlasgowBoysbyMargaret McDonald as well as the Shadowers’ Choice and AGS Choice,KingofNothingbyNathanaelLessore.
MCDONALD
REVIEWED BY MISS PUSHONG
How do you get through life when you not only think you are unwanted but completely unloveable? Banjo and Finlay are both looked-after children, moving between foster homes and group homes without ever making connections with anyone. Why bother, whenyouknowyouaregoingtoyo-yobetweengrouphomesandfosterfamilies.
When Banjo arrives in the group home, he meets Finlay who is quiet and just wants to blend into the background, whereas Banjo stands out due to his both his red hair and hair-triggertemper
Together,thisunlikelypairdonotjustformafriendship,theybecomeafamilyandoffer eachotheremotionalsupportwithoutevenrealisingitorvocalisingit.However,oneday a misunderstanding and their lack of communication sees their friendship fractured and theirtrustbroken
The story is told in a dual narrative with flashbacks giving you snippets of Finlay and Banjo growing up in the caresystem.Inthepresentday,theyarebothstruggling.Quitesimply,theymisseachother,butneitherboyhas theemotionalcapacitytoknowhowtofixit.
Whilst Finlay continues to isolate himself, Banjo wants to connect with people, but his temper makes this difficult, as he uses fighting as a way to get his anger under control, which makes it easy to label him a troublemakerandwritehimoffbecauseofhisbehaviour.However,hisfosterparentsarepatientandinsteadof sendinghimbacktothethecarehomewhichhealwaysexpects,theygivehimthesupportandspaceheneeds tofindhisplaceintheirfamily
Thestoryisthought-provoking,itgivessuchanauthenticinsightintowhatgoesonunderthesurface Boththe main characters and the two main supporting characters are completely engaging and whilst reading you are willing Finlay and Banjo not to reject the friendship and love they are each being offered, as this could be the firstimportantstepindealingwiththeirpasttraumas.
Through their friendship, the book explores themes of loneliness, mental health, childhood trauma, disability andidentity.Italsoexplorestheconnectionbetweentoxicmasculinityandlonelinessinasensitiveway.
The overriding message that resonates with me as a reader, is the sheer optimism. No matter how broken you thinkyouare,howmuchbaggageyouthinkyoucarry,orhowundeservingyouthinkyouareofanythinggoodin yourlife,thisbookwillproveyouwrongoneverycount,itislikebeaco fh
ThiswasafantasticreadandisaworthywinneroftheprestigiousCarn
“It’s such a beautiful thing to hold somebody”
Atjust27yearsold,MargaretMcDonaldistheyoungestwinneroftheCarnegieMedal inits99yearhistory.BornandraisedinScotland,GlasgowBoysisherdebutnovelin whichshe exploreslifeincareforlooked-afterchildren,whilstalsodrawingfromher ownpersonalexperienceofgrowingupwithadisability.
YEAR 7 WINNERS!
s to complete
ubmissions all ook prize with t-winners also n Amazon gift ard. winners nd David ners-up eb and Zirui
Two of the pages from David’s Reading Challenge workbook
Zirui
Zayd Seb
Casper David
YEAR 8 WINNERS
YEAR 8 READS AROUND THE WORLD!
For 2024/25, all Year 8 students were issued with a Reading Passport, and every time they ‘visited’ a continent through reading a book their passport received a sticker for that continent!
The two joint-winners both received a travel journal and an Amazon gift card. All the runner-up received a book prize.
Joint winners
Jas and Freddie
Runners-up
Thisum, Henry and Kesara
Two of the stamped ‘visitor’ entries in Freddie’s Reading Passport!
Thisum
Jas
Henry Freddie
LIBRARY STATS LIBRARY STATS
This year we received the Reading Culture Trailblazer award from Beanstack which is granted to schools who achieve a 75% participation rate of students logging reading through Beanstack each year.
Our reading target this year was to log 300,000 reading minutes, which despite a valiant effort we did not quite achieve. However, I am confident that we can make this target next year.
Thisgoestoshowthehuge popularityofMangaatAGS.
Thisyearwehaveaddedseveral newtitles,thelatestbeing SeasonOneofBlueLock,the popularfootballmanga.
4. Crookhaven: The School for Thieves
5. King of Nothing 6 The Hobbit
7. Percy Jackson and the Chalice of the Gods
8. Demon Slayer Vol. 1
9. Lord of the Flies
10.The Hunger Games
Congratulations to Zayd who has borrowed a staggering 115 books from the
this
- july 2025 - july 2025
RIDLEY
Ridley House came out top in this year’s battle of the books by borrowing an incredible 2039 books over the year! Well done to all of Ridley’s KS3 students who made this win possible.
YEAR8
Not only did LE8 borrow the most books out of all the Year 8 classes, they also came top of ALL the KS3 classes, with an impressive1076loansovertheyear
YEAR7
RI7 were the top borrowers from Year 7 with an impressive 932 loans.
YEAR9
PH9borrowedthemostbooksoutofalltheYear9classeswith 279loans.
MY TOP 5 MY TOP 5
MY TOP 5 FAVOURITE BOOK SERIES BY ZAYD, YEAR 7
Here are my top picks:
Crookhaven by J.J. Arcanjo
A school for thieves who use their skills for good? Instantly hooked. It’s full of clever twists, action, and great character backstories.
Alex Rider by Anthony Horowitz
Spy missions, emotional depth, and villains with real motives. Thrilling action that keeps you on the edge of your seat
Robin Hood by Robert Muchamore
Tied with Alex Rider because I couldn’t choose one. It’s a modern, techy take on the legend, with Robin going up against a corrupt government plus hacking. What’s there not to like?
Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland
Dragons see humans as squeaky scavengers love that angle. The world-building is top-tier, and the maps shaped like dragons are a nice touch. Great arcs, strong characters, and epic villains.
Urban Outlaws by Peter Jay Black
Teen hackers in a hidden bunker, fighting bad guys with brains and gadgets Feels like a mash-up of Robin Hood and Alex Rider, with a fantastic final book.
The Twitchers by M.G. Leonard
Birdwatching and crime-solving? Not a very common theme, but still a very good one The characters are super likeable, and each mystery has a twist that keeps things interesting.
All worth reading especially if you love action, clever plots, and a bit of rebellion.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS:
The Mazerunner series by James Dashner The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis Planet Omar by Zanib Mian
BOOK REVIEWS BOOK REVIEWS
BEETLE BOY BY M.G. LEONARD
BY ZIRUI, YEAR 7
DearSirorMadamPoliceOfficer,
MynameisDarkus,andlastmonthIbelievethatmyfatherwaskidnapped.HisnamewasDr BartholomewCuttlebuteveryonecallshimBarty Twoweeksago,wevisitedtheplaceofhisdisappearanceandfounddeadBeetlesandBarty’ s glasses.ThisallhappenedinTheNaturalHistoryMuseumintheCutterRoom. Ihavealsobeeninvestigatingthismysteriousdisappearanceandalltheevidenceshowsthat thefashiondesignerLucretiaCutterhaskidnappedSpencerCrispsandmyfather. Myuncle,MaxmillianCuttleandSpencer’smother,IvyCrispshaveallledtoanhypothesis thatthisevilwomanisalsoDrLucyJohnstonefromtheFabreProjectIhavealsopersonally metthechildofthisevilcreaturewhocanconfirmthattheabovehavebeenkidnappedand hasalsocalledforhelpassheisregularlytortured.
YoursSincerely, DarkusCuttle.
JOURNEY TO THE RIVER SEA BY EVA IBBOTSON
REVIEWED BY LUCA, YEAR 8
Ithinkthatthisbookisareallygoodbooktoreadbecauseofitsnever-ending thrillingatmosphereandhowitallowsyoutoalwaysbeonedgeforwhatis goingtohappennext
ThereareafewplottwistswhichIenjoyedbecauseIliketoreadbookswhere youthinkyouknowwhatisgoingonbutyouendupbeingtotallywrongandare shockedtofindout.Forexample,themaincharacter’sfriendhasbeenpraying fortheirdownfallthewholetimetheyhavebeentogether
Overall,IthinkthisisagoodreadforanyonewhowantstoknowaboutSouth Americaandalsoanyonewholikesbooksbasedaroundmysteryandmain characterswhowanttoknowabouteverythingthat’shappening.��
TOP 5 TOP 5
WORST HUNGER GAMES CHARACTERS
BY BEN AND
HENRY, YEAR 8
Caesar Flickerman
Caesar is not an obvious chance for the fifth worst Hunger Games character, but he is in full support of the games, and in the interview with the tributes he tries to make slaughtering other humans as jolly as possible so more people watch.
Mrs Mellark
Mrs Mellark cruelly abuses Peeta. She beats him when he ‘accidentally’ dropped the bread do give to Katniss. She does not treat Peeta like a mother should, and partially starves him.
Alma Coin
Coin was a tyrant, just like Snow. When the rebellion defeated the Capitol in the war, she tried to create a Capitol Hunger Games where citizens of the Capitol participated in the arena instead of the Districts. Coin also gave the order to launch the bombs that killed Prim and so many other innocent people. This is why Katniss killed her instead of Snow
President Snow
President Snow is bad because he initiates the Hunger Games, and causes all of the suffering in the districts. He is a tyrant, and lives in luxury while half of Panem starves. He will also do anything to get what he wants.
Gale Hawthorne
Gale (with Beetee) manufactured bombs as fake medication. He deceitfully tricked Panem citizens into picking up med kits. Once they had all picked them up, he exploded them, brutally killing hundreds of innocent people in cold blood, including Prim
BOOK REVIEWS BOOK REVIEWS
THE MARTIAN BY ANDY WEIR
REVIEWED BY JAXON, YEAR 8
Thisisagreat,interestingreadaboutamanstuckonMarstryingtoliveuntilthenextmission tosavehim. Itisagreatwaytospendthefirst10minutesofmyEnglishlessonsandthelastten minutesofmyday.
Thebookissetinthenearfuturesoitisgreatforsci-fifansandthebook'shumourisalso therewithrandomamusingeventshappening.
ItisoneofthebestbooksIhavereadbyfarandwouldbeagreatrecommendationforpeople whoareinterestedinthetopicsIlistedabove.
THE BLUE BOOK OF NEBO BY MANON STEFFAN ROS
REVIEWED BY GABRIEL, YEAR 8
DylanwassixwhentheEndcame Now,attheageof14,heandhisMumliveonadesolate hilltopinthemiddleofnowhere.Theykeepsecretsinthisbook-theBlueBookofNebo.
Thisisafantasticbookandshowsreaderswhatlifeislikeafteraworld-endingapocalypse.It's almostasifweareabeingthatwatchesoverDylanandhismotherandtheadventuresthat theymake Thiswasaninterestingbooktoread!
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
SEPTEMBER - WOLF HOLLOW SUMMER QUIZ
Over the summer, the incoming Year 7 students were all issued with some summer transition work connected to their summer reading book ‘Wolf Hollow’
One of the optional tasks was an quiz, so it was brilliant to see so many students taking part.
James was the overall winner of the Wolf Hollow quiz scoring a fantastic 17/21!
OCTOBER - PERCY JACKSON & THE GREEK MYTHS QUIZ
October was a busy month in the Library, we held our first Harry Potter Week which was probably our most popular event of the year, with the wand making being a particular favourite with lots of students asking for it to be a yearly event - sorry guys, but I think this will be put to bed for a while, but rest assured another ‘week’ for a different book character/series is in the pipeline for next year!
90%CLUB
James’ prize was a set of three books. Answer on Page
1.
90%ofthequizteamsansweredthisquestion correctly! WhatisthenameofPercy’ssword?
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER
BLACK HISTORY MONTH QUIZ
HALLOWEEN QUIZ
40%CLUB
WhatisthefirstlineoftheAddamsFamil themetune?
They’recreepyandthey’rekooky They’redealdlyandthey’reicky They’remysteriousandthey’respooky They’requirkyandthey’refreaky
Winners of the Halloween Quiz!
Thinuga and Zach
Alec
Arnav and Olly
OCTOBER OCTOBER
Some of the entries for the wand making competition
OCTOBER - HARRY POTTER WEEK
AnsweronPage44
Nikhil and Alec
Harry Potter Bingo
Harry Potter Quizzers!
Quiz Winners with Dobby photobombing the shot!
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
DECEMBER - THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
er was Alex in Year 9 who correctly guessed was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 1 - GUESS THE BOOK IN A JAR
ThewinnerwasJainilinYear7.
#3 - SCRATCH ART BAUBLES
Students were given a map and challenged to find t Baubles which were hung around the school. Each Christmas/Winterthemedriddlethatstudentshadto Studentslovedcreatingthesebaubles,andwehadsomefantasticdesignswhichwereusedtodecorateourtree!
DECEMBER DECEMBER
DAY #5 - A CHRISTMAS MYSTERY
For the eight teams taking part it was a race against time to solve the Christmas Mystery. All nine puzzles hadtobesolvedinorder toworkoutthecombination toopenthelockedboxandclaimtheprize!
It was a close competition, but Team Ryan, Rishik Zach and Thinuga were the victors who each won a Christmas goodie bag everyone else got a lump o c
DAY #4 - CHRISTMAS ORIGAMI
It felt like the whole library was full of students creatingsomethingwithpaper!
Srikara, Jas, Thomas and Jathin
The origami stars were probably the most popular, and was closely followed by the reindeer bookmarks!
haosreignedattheReindeerHoopla, hereeightteamswenthead-to-head o see who could throw the most oops to land on the reindeer’s ntlers!
Ryan, Rishik, Zach and Thinuga
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
thatstudentsmadeoverthelast2weeks.
DAY #9 - UNO TOURNAMENT
Thirty-two super competitive students from Years 7-9 entered this years Uno Tournament. The final battle was between Ben, Josh, Kevin and Abhiram with Ben our 2023 champion, retaining histitlefor2024!
DAY #10 - CHRISTMAS QUIZ
4%CLUB
4.
Only4%of thequizteams answeredthisquestion correctly! Whichreindeer’sname means‘thunder’?
Blitzen
Dunder
Dasher
Donner
AnsweronPage44
DAY #11 AND DAY 12 - CHRISTMAS CAROL-OKE
This is arguably our most popular event of the year. Over the two days we saw some great performances from both staff and students
Day Two Carol-oke Winner, Josh
Day One Carol-oke Winner, Rory
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
JANUARY2025-
LUNAR NEW YEAR QUIZ
LANGUAGES DAY QUIZ
10%CLUB
6.
10%of thequizteams answeredthisquestion correctly!
WherearetheSpanishSteps located?
Spain
Portugal
Italy
France
Answeronpage44
FEBRUARY - CHILDREN’S MENTAL HEALTH WEEK QUIZ
20%CLUB
20%of thequizteams answeredthisquestion correctly!
Howmanydaysdoesthe LunarNewYearlast?
15days
12days
1day
31days
Answeronpage44
1.
5.
Isaac and Jasper
Alex and Arthur
Zarrar and Rabeeh
Samuel and Alex
Vinusan and Tanav
Jasper
Isaac
VALENTINE’S DAY QUIZ
LUNAR NEW YEAR CRAFTS THE YEAR OF THE SNAKE
80%CLUB
7.
80%ofthequizteamsansweredthis questioncorrectly! WhatisthenameoftheRomangodoflove oftenassociatedwithValentine’sDay?
Answeronpage44
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
MARCH2025-
The winner of the World Book Day ‘Pets Caught Reading’ competition was Milo with his super cute photo of Winston.
Milo won a £10.00 Amazon voucher plus some treats for Winston!
The two runners-up were Aakansh with his photo of Ponyo and Rabeeh for his Group Read who each received a £5 00 Amazon voucher
Ponyo Cashew Sonic Kitkat
Group Read Winston
Milo
Aakansh
Rabeeh
SHAKESPEARE WEEK
MARCH MARCH
UNLOCKING SHAKESPEARE’S MEMORY BOX
The entire world has forgotten about Shakespeare! Everything we know about the Bard has been locked away in a memory box Eight teams battled against each other in order to free the memories by solving a series of puzzles and questions to be the first to solve the combination to open the box.
SHAKESPEARE OR FAKESPEARE? QUIZ
Students were challenged to recognise words that Shakespeare was credited with inventing as well as seeing if they could tell the difference between Shakespeare and Hip Hop lyrics.
10%CLUB
Only10%ofthequizteams answeredthisquestion correctly!
ShakespeareorHipHop? “Sleepisthecousinofdeath”
Answeronpage44 8.
ELIZABETHAN MASK MAKING
Students had a great time designing and decorating masks. It was a riot of feathers, colours and jewels!
Zach Thinuga Rishik Ryan
Maharshi and Dominic
Thinuga and Zach Ben and Henry
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
APRIL2025
EASTER EGG BINGO
Students love playing Bingo! There were a lot of small wins by students getting lines throughout the game. But at the end we had four ‘full house’ winners!
For Mother’s Day students made paper flower bouquets!
The ‘Full House’ winners!
Srikara Leon Ushakan Aadhav
APRIL APRIL
EARTH DAY QUIZ
5%CLUB
Only5%ofthequiz teamsansweredthis questioncorrectly! Whatpercentageof plasticdowerecycle globally?
Thinuga and Zach
Ben and Henry Isaac and Jasper
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
50%CLUB
50%ofthequizteams answeredthisquestion correctly!
Whatwasthefirstplanetthe DeathStardestroyed?
Tatooine Alderann Endor Yavin4
Answeronpage44
WORLD MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK
Star wars quiz
The Star Wars Quiz was a hot ticket item this year! But Isaac and Theo were the Jedi Masters as they pretty much led the quiz from start to finish!
During Mental Health Week, the Library was a hive of creative, mindful activities. One of our most popular additions was a huge bag of Lego which was available throughout the week. This might even become a monthly addition to the Library’s calendar!
The AGS version of Lego Masters!
Arthur and Alex Isaac and Theo
Freddie and Januka
MAY MAY
design!
Some of the painted mindful boxes.
There were different activities throughout the week including decorating mini ‘mindful’ boxes and mandalas as well as the obligatory quiz!
Day one of Lego creations!
Every bit of available library space was used during the week!
Theo and Evan showcase their
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
Overall, students all seemed to enjoy the games and activities throughout the week.
Feel good Friday ended with one of our popular Kahoots which was
End of quiz chaos!
The Mandala Tree!
Izyaan and William Alex and Harry Rishik and Aadhav
WORLD DAY FOR CULTURAL DIVERSITY QUIZ
30%CLUB
30%ofthequizteamsansweredthis questioncorrectly! Whichcontinentisthemost linguisticallydiverse?
SouthAmerica Asia Africa
Europe
Answeronpage44
Thinuga and Zach
Isaac and Jasper William and Izyaan
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
FATHER’S DAY
For Father’s Day, students painted ‘Best Dad’ hanging shapes as a gift for their dads.
FRIDAY 13TH - ZOMBIE BINGO
Harry and Ethan, both got a full house in our game of Zombie Bingo!
Whichchocolatebarwasformally knownasMarathonintheUK?
Snickers
DoubleDecker
Mars
Boost
Answeronpage44
Thinuga and Zach
Ben and Henry
Jasper and Ben
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
CULTURE DAY
As part of Culture day, students decorated some wooden flags in a theme that was meaningful to them. As well as national flags and cultural emblems we had quite a few pizza designs!
In run-up to the summer holidays, the library went all out in organising daily activities for students. We included all the most popular events, plus a few new ones!
DINOSAUR QUIZ
4TH JULY - ALL AMERICAN QUIZ
10%CLUB
10%ofthequizteams answeredthisquestion correctly!
Whatisthehighest grossingmovieattheUS BoxOffice?
Answeronpage44
25%CLUB
25%ofthequizteams answeredthisquestion correctly!
Whowrotethebook JurassicPark?
ErnestCline
MichaelCrichton OrsonScottCard
ArthurC.Clarke
Answeronpage44
Winners of the Dinosaur Quiz!
Winners of the 4th July Quiz
William
Tanav and Vinusan
Liam and Ethan
William and Izyaan
Alex
Thinuga and Zach
This quiz was less about Independence Day and more about Marvel movies and terrible American chocolate!
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
LEGO MASTERS!
Just a couple of Lego builds completed by students.
ICE-CREAM MAGNETS
Students loved decorating these little wooden ice-cream/lolly shapes which we turned into fridge magnets.
This is definitely going on next year’s list of activities as we ran out of shapes and there were more than a few disappointed students!
Krishi and Kevin
Rabeeh and Marcus
JULY JULY
CLUEDO
The aim of the game was to work out who stole which artefact from which location! All suspects, artefacts and locations were taken from popular novels. Fifteen informants from Years 8, 9, 10 and 13 acted as Informants Players had to approach the 15 informants and answer a multiple choice question. If correct, the Informant showed them their clue card so that it could be eliminated from their investigation.
These two Informants were backed a t l
nner, ggie om
THE YEAR IN REVIEW THE YEAR IN REVIEW
SUMMER BINGO
Some very happy Bingo players!
Luke was the most envied as he was calling Bingo on each of the lines! Leon was the most excited to realise he had a full house and William just took yet another win in his stride!
Leon
William
Luke
JULY JULY
THE BIG END OF YEAR QUIZ
The final quiz of the year was a mega quiz containing questions from all the different quizzes throughout the year, however, the Percy Jackson round definitely got the biggest cheer from students!
0%CLUB ofthequizteams edthisquestion correctly! ichlanguagedoes PENGUINoriginate?
An excitable end to our year in the Library!
Josh
Isaac and Jasper
Alex and William
The top three winning teams
COMING SOON!
There are always a lot of new releases over the summer and Autumn term, and this year is no exception! All the titles below have been pre-ordered, so if you want to reserve any of them, click the book cover to go to the Online Library where you can click the Reserve button and you will be emailed when they are ready to collect.
The Court of the Dead (The Nico Di Angelo Adventures #2) by Rick Riordan (Published Sept. 2025)
A few months after returning from the depths of Tartarus, demigods Nico di Angelo and Will Solace agree to join Nico's half-sister Hazel Levesque at Camp Jupiter on the West Coast She needs their help in managing a situation that the boys inadvertently brought about: the demigods showed the monsters of the Underworld that they have options; they don’t have to be evil. The monsters have taken refuge at Camp Jupiter. Nico and Will are on site, assisting Hazel when one by one monsters start disappearing from camp. A mysterious dark force is at work, and its plan is to punish all monsters for their past crimes.
Skandar is in hiding after the Chaos Cup where Rex Manning revealed a game-changing secret.ButasRexpreparestoinvadetheMainland,theIslandersarenotsurewhototrust.
With one of Skandar’s closest friends now fighting for the enemy, Skandar must build new alliances–includinganuneasytrucewithKenna.TodefeatRex,Skandarandhisfriendswill need to look back to the origins of the Island, and harness the full power of their elemental magic. Can Skandar become the leader he needs to be – to save the Mainland and the heart oftheIslanditself?
Stocking Full of Spies (The Ministry of Unladylike Activity #3) by Robin Stevens (Published Sept. 2025)
It's December 1941, and almost Christmas, when a bomb falls on Deepdean School for Girls MayandNualaarewhiskedawayfromthechaosandsenttostaywithMay'sbigsister,Hazel Wong,whoisworkingatBletchleyPark.
Withinseconds,they'rethrownstraightintotheirmostdangerouscaseyet.Acodebreakerhas beenshotinwhatappearstobeatragicaccident-untilasuspiciousandtop-secretmessage is discovered in his pocket. Was he a spy, working for the other side? Was the message plantedonhim?Mostimportantly-wasthismurder?
Vinir, the luscious-locked elven menace is staying in Midgard. To preserve the peace and preventhimfromtryingtomurderLoki(again),OdinsendsthegoddessFreyjatokeepaneye onthings.Soon,strangethingsstarttohappen.Thorreceivesmysteriousfanmail,Valerieand Georginastartbickeringand,worstofall,HeimdalldevelopsacrushonLoki'steacher!
Withfriendsturningintoenemiesandenemiesintofriends,it’suptoLoki–and(horrifyingly) Vinir–tofigureoutwhatmischiefisafoot…
Skandar and the Spirit War (Skandar #5) by A. F. Steadman (Published Aug. 2025)
Loki: A Bad God's Guide to Causing Chaos (Loki: a Bad God’s Guide #5) by Louis Stowell (Published Sept. 2025)
NEW BOOKS
Crookhaven: The Thieves' Revenge (Book 5) by J. J. Arcanjo (Published Aug. 2025)
Thieves, and the crew have only one thing on their minds. This year, they must take down Gabriel's parents - the infamous leaders of the criminal organisation, the Nameless - once and forall.
How will the crew balance this goal alongside their last year of studies, which includes a new classcalledGroundwork,andthemostdifficultBreak-intodate:infiltratingCrookhavenitself?
Mostimportantly,cantheyfindawaytoluretwooftheUnderworld'smostnotoriousvillainsout oftheshadows,withoutanyonegettinghurt ?
Creatures: The Poisoned King (Book #2) by Katherine Rundell (Published Sept. 2025)
When Christopher Forrester is unexpectedly woken by a miniature dragon chewing on his face, his heart leaps for joy. For months he's dreamed of returning to the Archipelago - the secret islands where all the creatures of myth still live But he did not know it would involve a rescue mission on the back of a sphinx, or a plan to enter a dragon's lair. Nor did he imagine it would involveagirlwithaflockofbirdsatherside,anew-hatchedchickinherpocketandaravenous hungerforjustice...
Skulduggery Pleasant: A Small Matter of Impending Catastrophe by Derek Landy (Published Oct. 2025)
ThebookversionofthethrillingandinnovativesecondSkulduggeryPleasantpodcast
In1962,threesorcerersconvergedtodobattleinahiddenchambernearadisusedplatformin theLondonUnderground.Prophecyforetoldthatthevictorwouldholdtheveryfateofhumanity intheirhands.Sincethen…nothing.
Now,thepeoplewhoaretryingtofindoutexactlywhathappenedallthoseyearsagoarebeing murdered – there is a killer coming after them, a killer with a plan – and their only hope for survivallieswithSkulduggeryPleasantandValkyrieCain.
Because when the end of the world comes knocking, our first line of defence must always be sarcasm.Unstoppable,witheringsarcasm.
(Published Aug. 2025)
Whenherislandhomeisoverrunbyevilspirits,Evieissavedonlybythepowerfulgemstoneher parentsentrustedtoher.HerbestfriendArthurisnotsolucky-caughtinthemagicalcrossfire, hefindshimselfinthebodyofacat.
Onamissiontoreturnhimtohisbodyanddefeattheghouls,EvieandArthurteamupwithCai,a trainee shaman, who helps them discover the truth. The terrifying Blackheart Man is plotting to steal the island's four magical gemstones and use their power to destroy the barrier between the worlds of the living and the dead. It will take all of Evie's magic, Cai's bravery and Arthur's talentforthieverytostophim
Impossible
Spirit Warriors by Ashley Thorpe
PUZZLE CORNER
If you are looking for something to do during the summer break there are a lot of games and activities on the Library's Google Site (link on page 2). Below are some new games you might enjoy. Just click on the links!
NEW BOOKS - MEMORY GAME
Give your brain a workout with this memory game. There are 16 books to find and matchwhichwillallbeavailableintheLibraryduringtheAutumnterm!
Clickheretoaccessthegame.
JIGSAW PUZZLE
Without wanting to portray myself as seven different types of mad cat lady, I couldn’t resist creating a Year of Biscotti jigsaw! This puzzle contains all the Biscotti pictures I have been posting with your Beanstack reminders over the year as well as a couple of new ones! They cover the school year from September to July you’re welcome!
Click here to access the jigsaw.